Stand-Up Comedy in Chicago
Stand-Up Comedy in Chicago

Author: Vince Vieceli and Bill Brady

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 128

ISBN-13: 1467111848

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Ten years after Chicago saw its first full-time comedy club open, the landscape was decidedly different. "Stand-up comedy has exploded in the last couple of years," a club owner told the Chicago Tribune in 1985, "that's the only way to describe it: exploded." It was truly a comedy boom, with as many as 16 clubs operating at once, and it lasted nearly a decade before fading, taking with it some of Chicago's oldest comedy stages, including the Comedy Cottage, Comedy Womb, and Who's on First. Still, stalwarts like Barrel of Laughs (south) and Zanies (north) persevered. That part of the story is known; overlooked is the fact there was a comedy boom, period. To hear the story, it is as if stand-up comedy innately morphed from a dated nightclub scene to what one Chicago Sun-Times writer called "Chicago's atomic comedy blast."

Do You Talk Funny?
Do You Talk Funny?

Author: David Nihill

Publisher: BenBella Books, Inc.

Published: 2016-03-08

Total Pages: 204

ISBN-13: 1942952287

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Public speaking can be terrifying. For David Nihill, the idea of standing in front of an audience was scarier than cliff jumping into a thorny pit of spiders and mothers-in-law. Without a parachute or advanced weaponry. Something had to change. In what doesn't sound like the best plan ever, David decided to overcome his fears by pretending to be an accomplished comedian called "Irish Dave" for one full year, crashing as many comedy clubs, festivals, and shows as possible. One part of the plan was at least logical: he was already Irish and already called Dave. In one year, David went from being deathly afraid of public speaking to hosting a business conference, regularly performing stand-up comedy and winning storytelling competitions in front of packed houses. And he did it by learning from some of the best public speakers in the world: stand-up comedians. Do You Talk Funny?: 7 Comedy Habits to Become a Better (and Funnier) Public Speaker shows how the key principles of stand-up comedy can be applied to your speaking engagements and presentations to make you funnier, more interesting, and better looking. (Or at least two of the three.) Whether you are preparing for a business presentation, giving a wedding toast, defending your thesis, raising money from investors, or simply want to take on something you're afraid of, this book will take you from sweaty to stage-ready. You'll learn how to: - Craft a story and content that your audience will want to listen to - Find the funniest parts of your material and how to get to them faster - Deal with stage fright - Master the two most important parts of your performance: timing and delivery Ten percent of the author's proceeds from this book will go to Arash Bayatmakou via Help Hope Live until he is fully back on his feet and thereafter to one of the many facing the same challenges after suffering a severe spinal cord injury.

Mastering Stand-Up
Mastering Stand-Up

Author: Stephen Rosenfield

Publisher: Chicago Review Press

Published: 2017-11-01

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 1613736959

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Stephen Rosenfield, founder and director of the American Comedy Institute, the premier comedy school in the United States, has taught literally dozens of major standup comics in North America, and has also pioneered comedy as an academic discipline in many universities, a trend that is rapidly spreading. Mastering Stand-Up draws on Rosenfield's own extensive experience (and those of countless stars like Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor, Chris Rock, Rodney Dangerfield, Louis C.K., Steve Martin, Roseanne, and Johnny Carson) to show the reader—and would-be comic—what works, what doesn't, and why. Forty sharply written chapters cover every conceivable angle of the joke and how to tell it. There are a number of books on comedy and how to do it, but none has the breadth and authority Rosenfield brings to his theme. It's not for nothing that the New York Times has described him as "probably the best-known comedy teacher in the country." Rosenfield's book is sure to become the classic text on its subject. And it should help thousands who long to make others laugh to realize their fondest hopes.

All Jokes Aside
All Jokes Aside

Author: Raymond Lambert

Publisher: Agate Publishing

Published: 2016-01-12

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 1572847638

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Chris Rock. Jamie Foxx. Steve Harvey. Dave Chappelle. Some of the biggest names in American entertainment today all appeared at Raymond Lambert's club All Jokes Aside, the legendary Chicago showcase for African-American comedy, early in their careers. This insightful memoir follows up on Lambert's critically acclaimed 2012 Showtime documentary, Phunny Business, and tells the story of his life as seen through the lens of All Jokes Aside—its successes, failures, and lessons learned. By the late 1980s, Lambert was earning a six-figure salary as an investment banker on Wall Street, but dreamed of starting his own company. With zero experience, an equally committed partner, and a little borrowed money, he opened All Jokes Aside, and before long was helping to launch some of the biggest names in comedy. This is story of Lambert's journey, a behind-the-scenes look at the world of show business, and an inspiring tale for any would-be entrepreneur. Chock-full of cautionary tales both humorous and dramatic, revealing details on the early careers of top performers, and tangible guidance on how to build a business from the ground up, this book is a much-needed recent history of black entertainment and a powerful memoir of entrepreneurial ups and downs.

Stay Hungry
Stay Hungry

Author: Sebastian Maniscalco

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2018-02-27

Total Pages: 238

ISBN-13: 1501115995

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From comedian and actor Sebastian Maniscalco—star of the film About My Father with Robert DeNiro—an inspiring, honest, uproarious collection of essays tracing his career from playing boxing rings and bowling alleys to reaching the pinnacles of comedy success. At twenty-four, Sebastian Maniscalco arrived in LA with a suitcase and saved up minimum wages. He knew no one and nothing about standup comedy, but he was determined to go for it anyway. Two decades later, he’s on the Forbes’ list of highest earning comedians, selling out arenas, and starring in numerous hit comedy specials including Why Would You Do That? and Is It Me?. Stay Hungry tells the story of the twenty years in between. On the way from clueless rube to standup superstar, Seb was booed off stages; survived on tips and stolen food; got advice from mentors Andrew Dice Clay, Vince Vaughn, Tony Danza, and Jerry Seinfeld; fell in love; and stayed true to his Italian-immigrant roots. The one code that always kept him going: stay hungry, keep focused, never give up, and one day, you’ll make it.

Inside Comedy
Inside Comedy

Author: David Steinberg

Publisher: University Press of Kentucky

Published: 2023-06-06

Total Pages: 380

ISBN-13: 0813197570

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David Steinberg's name has been synonymous with comedy for decades. The Canadian-born comedian, producer, writer, director, and author has been called "a comic institution himself" by the New York Times. He appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson 140 times (second only to Bob Hope), and directed episodes of popular television sitcoms, including Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld, Friends, Mad About You, The Golden Girls, and Designing Women. From 2012–2015, Steinberg hosted the comedy documentary series Inside Comedy, which featured such comedy greats as Billy Crystal, Chris Rock, and Gary Shandling. In this entertaining history of comedy, Steinberg shares insightful memories of his journey through his career and takes the reader behind the curtain of the comedy scene of the last half-century. Steinberg shares amusing and often hilarious stories and anecdotes from some of the most legendary comedians in the industry—from Groucho Marx, Carol Burnett, Mel Brooks, and Richard Pryor to Lily Tomlin, Robin Williams, Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Tina Fey. Inside Comedy presents in-depth portraits of some of the most talented and revered comedians in the world of comedy today.

Dear Committee Members
Dear Committee Members

Author: Julie Schumacher

Publisher: Anchor

Published: 2015-06-23

Total Pages: 194

ISBN-13: 0345807332

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“Like Richard Russo’s Straight Man this book has a lot to say about the humanities in American colleges and universities…. Very funny and also moving.” —Tom Perrotta, New York Post A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR and Boston Globe Finally a novel that puts the "pissed" back into "epistolary." Jason Fitger is a beleaguered professor of creative writing and literature at Payne University, a small and not very distinguished liberal arts college in the midwest. His department is facing draconian cuts and squalid quarters, while one floor above them the Economics Department is getting lavishly remodeled offices. His once-promising writing career is in the doldrums, as is his romantic life, in part as the result of his unwise use of his private affairs for his novels. His star (he thinks) student can't catch a break with his brilliant (he thinks) work Accountant in a Bordello, based on Melville's Bartleby. In short, his life is a tale of woe, and the vehicle this droll and inventive novel uses to tell that tale is a series of hilarious letters of recommendation that Fitger is endlessly called upon by his students and colleagues to produce, each one of which is a small masterpiece of high dudgeon, low spirits, and passive-aggressive strategies. We recommend Dear Committee Members to you in the strongest possible terms. Don’t miss Julie Schumacher's new novel, The English Experience, coming soon.

Facebook Marketing All-in-One For Dummies
Facebook Marketing All-in-One For Dummies

Author: Amy Porterfield

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2012-12-05

Total Pages: 788

ISBN-13: 1118466802

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Great new edition covers what you need to know for successful Facebook marketing Facebook keeps evolving, and so does the social mediasphere. Even if you have a Facebook marketing strategy, have you taken into consideration Pinterest? Spotify? Foursquare? Facebook Marketing All-in-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition does. This detailed resource not only reveals how to create successful Facebook marketing strategies, it also shows you how to incorporate and use the entire social network to its full potential. Covers the tools, techniques, and apps you need to know to create successful Facebook marketing campaigns Nine minibooks cover the essentials: Joining the Facebook Marketing Revolution; Claiming Your Presence On Facebook; Adding the Basics; Building, Engaging, Retaining, and Selling; Understanding Facebook Applications; Making Facebook Come Alive; Advanced Facebook Marketing Tactics; Facebook Advertising; Measuring, Monitoring, and Analyzing Explores the new Timeline design for Pages, changes to Facebook Insights, new apps to incorporate into your strategy, and more Facebook Marketing All-in-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition is the perfect resource for any marketer who wants to build or refine a social media marketing presence that includes Facebook.

Playfully Inappropriate
Playfully Inappropriate

Author: Jared Volle

Publisher: Independently Published

Published: 2019-05-25

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13: 9781098949327

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Playfully Inappropriate introduces a radically different approach to writing comedy. No brainstorming. No Broken Assumption Jokes. No joke structures. No kidding. Instead, it focuses on tapping back into your unique sense of humor, personality and creative potential. Have you ever wondered how some comedians can tell such hilarious stories while making the audience feel as if they're hanging out with a friend? Or how top-level comedians can leave you in stitches without ever feeling fake or inauthentic? Comedians were telling hilarious stories and having funny conversations long before they ever learned a single joke structure or tried to list an audience's assumptions. Why trade your natural, effortless ability to make people laugh for awkward joke formulas and brainstorming exercises? Playfully Inappropriate replaces conventional brainstorming exercises and word associations with a fun, easy method of exploration and shows you how to methodically generate hilarious material without ever requiring that you conform to any arbitrary set of rules. You'll discover how "naturally funny people" are consistently able to recognize comedic opportunities and effortlessly respond with hilarious punchlines. Whether you're a stand-up comedian, perform improv, write sketch, or act, Playfully Inappropriate will show you how to bring the same natural flow to your creative process. In this book, you'll learn... How joke-tellers and storyteller comedians use different strategies to create humor How to apply audience psychology to maximize a joke's effectiveness An easy way to create joke premises How to recognize natural opportunities or create your own opportunity for a punchline How to use your natural sense of humor to write both conventional and unconventional jokes How storytelling comedians are able to capture the audience's attention early on How storytellers get laughs without requiring conventional joke structures

Stand-up Comedy in Theory, or, Abjection in America
Stand-up Comedy in Theory, or, Abjection in America

Author: John Limon

Publisher: Duke University Press

Published: 2000-06-23

Total Pages: 161

ISBN-13: 0822380501

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Stand-Up Comedy in Theory, or, Abjection in America is the first study of stand-up comedy as a form of art. John Limon appreciates and analyzes the specific practice of stand-up itself, moving beyond theories of the joke, of the comic, and of comedy in general to read stand-up through the lens of literary and cultural theory. Limon argues that stand-up is an artform best defined by its fascination with the abject, Julia Kristeva’s term for those aspects of oneself that are obnoxious to one’s sense of identity but that are nevertheless—like blood, feces, or urine—impossible to jettison once and for all. All of a comedian’s life, Limon asserts, is abject in this sense. Limon begins with stand-up comics in the 1950s and 1960s—Lenny Bruce, Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, Mike Nichols, Elaine May—when the norm of the profession was the Jewish, male, heterosexual comedian. He then moves toward the present with analyses of David Letterman, Richard Pryor, Ellen DeGeneres, and Paula Poundstone. Limon incorporates feminist, race, and queer theories to argue that the “comedification” of America—stand-up comedy’s escape from its narrow origins—involves the repossession by black, female, queer, and Protestant comedians of what was black, female, queer, yet suburbanizing in Jewish, male, heterosexual comedy. Limon’s formal definition of stand-up as abject art thus hinges on his claim that the great American comedians of the 1950s and 1960s located their comedy at the place (which would have been conceived in 1960 as a location between New York City or Chicago and their suburbs) where body is thrown off for the mind and materiality is thrown off for abstraction—at the place, that is, where American abjection has always found its home.